Computing devices are often constructed using peripherals and other components made from a variety of different vendors and manufacturers. For example, a typical personal computing device can include a display device made by one vendor, speakers made by another vendor, a hard drive made by yet another vendor, and a disc drive made by still another vendor, all assembled by a separate primary manufacturer into a single device having processors, storage units, drivers, and other components made by other different vendors or entities. The need to have these different devices all communicate with each other, or at least with a primary processing system, can often result in the use of standardized connections having different ports, cables, connectors and the like.
Where certain peripherals are fairly permanent and internalized within a single computing device, it is often more convenient and cheaper for the connections between peripherals and other device components to use some amount of permanent attachment or hard wiring to a printed circuit board or other similar item. Of course, such designs then tend to result in a particular peripheral or component becoming a permanent part of that computing device, since item modularity and the ability to swap out components can be hindered in such instances. This can be a problem when consumer demands and concerns tend toward modularity for a certain component, such as where the ability to replace, upgrade, remove for repair, or otherwise disassociate a particular peripheral with the overall computing device is desirable.
One well known alternative to hard-wired or other permanent types of connections is to provide standardized plug and port connections involving cables. This type of arrangement can be useful for connections that are intended to allow for external devices to communicate with device components or the overall computing device. Where communications take place entirely within the device, however, it can still be advantageous to allow for readily removable plug and port type connections. For example, a primary display device may receive communications from a CPU, video processor or other device component. Even where the connection between the display device and the other device component is fully within the overall computing device, it may still be desirable to provide a fully internalized standardized plug and ported connection between the components, so as to preserve display modularity.
Unfortunately, the use of fully internalized plug and port connections between device components can give rise to undesirable consequences. Such internal standardized ported and cabled connections are much more susceptible to unintended disconnections or unmatings, such as when devices are jostled, dropped and otherwise ordinarily disturbed repeatedly over long term use. This can be problematic in requiring one to open the device simply to plug the connector back into the port.
While many designs and techniques used to provide internal connections within computing devices have generally worked well in the past, there is always a desire to provide improvements in such designs and techniques. Therefore, the ability to have reliable internal cabled plug and port connections within a computing device that are not susceptible to unintended disconnections is desired.